Labour piles on pressure over bid by IAG

A showdown over job losses and connectivity routes to Heathrow, as well as the development of Cork and Shannon airports looms in the proposed €1.4bn Aer Lingus takeover, as Labour TDs increased the pressure for a tougher deal.

Transport Minister Paschal Donohoe would not comment on an emergency move at the Labour conference which set stringent conditions on the selling of the Government’s 25.1% stake, as tensions between the two coalition parties over the future of the carrier continued.

Though the vote at the conference is not binding on the Government, it makes it extremely difficult for Tánaiste Joan Burton to agree to any sale without its conditions being adhered to.